History of Film

The Running Horse

Several pictures were taken in quick succession to determine if a horse ever has all four hooves off the ground when running. This was the first ever example of a "moving picture."

1888

Roundhay Garden Scene - The First Film

The oldest surviving film in existence is a short film (2.11 seconds) directed by French inventor Louis Le Prince called the Roundhay Garden Scene.

1891

Invention of the Kinetograph

W. K. L. Dickinson, while working for Thomas Edison, invented the kinetograph, which is considered to be the first motion picture camera.

1903

The Great Train Robbery

The Great Train Robbery, created by Edward Porter, an employee of Thomas Edison, was the first U.S. narrative film.

1908

Fantasmagorie - The First Cartoon

Fantasmagorie, created in 1908 by Emile Cohl, was the first traditional hand-drawn animated cartoon. It lasted 1 minute and 20 seconds and depicted a stickman encountering different objects.

1917

The First Technicolor Film

The Gulf Between was the first film made in technicolor, and the first color film produced in the United States.

1927

First FIlm With Sound

The Jazz Singer, created in 1927, was the first film with sound. It earned millions of dollars and was a blockbuster film.

1929

First Academy Award

The first Academy Award for best picture was given to the movie Wings in 1929.

1939

The Wizard of Oz - Transition to Color

The Wizard of Oz was the first well-known color film, and represented the transition to color through its use of sepia in the beginning, and color later in the film.

1939

Highest Grossing Film Ever (adjusted for inflation)

When the amounts of money made by the most successful films of all time are adjusted for inflation, the one that comes out on top is Gone With the Wind, released in 1939, leaving Avatar in second place.

1941

Citizen Kane

Citizen Kane is the world's most famous and highly rated film and is at the top of most lists of the best films in history.

1955

Blackboard Jungle

Blackboard Jungle, which, featured "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley and the Comets, was the first film to feature a rock & roll song.

1960

Psycho - The First Well-known Horror Film

Psycho, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and released in 1960, is considered the mother of modern horror.

1971

Tiger Child - The First IMAX Film

Tiger Child, directed by Donald Brittian, was the first IMAX film.

1975

Jaws

Jaws, directed by Steven Spielberg, is known as the first modern blockbuster to make 100 million dollars at the box office.

1982

Tron - First CGI Film

Tron, released in 1982, was the first film to feature true CGI (computer-generated images), causing it to be disqualified from the Academy Awards.

1995

Toy Story

Toy Story, released in 1995, was the first film made entirely by computer animation and Pixar's first film.

2004

First Movie Shot Entirely in Front of a Green Screen

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, directed by Kerry Conran, was the first movie to be shot entirely in front of a digital background

2009

Avatar

Avatar has grossed 2.78 billion dollars, making it the current highest grossing film of all time.

2010

Toy Story 3 Grosses a billion dollars.

Toy Story 3, released in 2010, was the very first animated film to gross over a billion dollars.